Bookholder



Feb. 20, 1934. J, CLARK 1,947,757

BOOKHOLDER Filed Sept. 10, 1931 INVENTOR Patented Feb. 20, 1934 UNITED STATES BOOKHOLDER John L. Clark,

Bangor, Maine Application September 10, 1931 Serial No. 562,176

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in book holders and aims to provide means to clamp a book in open position on the holder.

This application embodies certain improvements over my Patent 362,060 dated May 3, 1887.

In the drawing,

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a book holder showing the improved clamping means applied thereto; and

Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of Fig. 1.

Referring particularly to the drawing, the preferred embodiment of the invention is there shown in connection with an adjustable book holder.

The book holder is shown as comprising a back member 10 in the form of a plate having integral foot members 11 at the lower side edges thereof and arranged substantially at right angles to the plate. The foot members extend below and to the front and rear of the plate, as shown. The upper edges 12 of the foot members provide supporting ledges for the lower edges of a book while the plate 10 supports the back of the book. The lower rear portions of the foot members are provided with apertures by means of which the book holder is pivotally mounted on screws 13 extending in a base 14. The base is preferably rotatably mounted on a subbase 1.5 by means of a bolt 16 extending through both bases. The back member 10 is adapted to be adjustable angularly by means of a cap 17 screw-threaded on a stud 18 secured in the base 14. The lower edge 19 of the back member 10 is so located with respect to the adjusting cap 17 that any desired angle of the member 10 may be obtained by revolving the cap on the stud. If desired, the back member may be lowered all the way down on the base 14.

The improved clamping means, for holding a book in open position on the holder, is shown as comprising a bail-shaped clamping member 20 having side arms 21 located adjacent to and between the foot members and a cross bar 22 extending substantially parallel with and above the ledges 12. The lower portions of the side arms 21 are bent outwardly in opposite directions to provide trunnions 23 which are journalled in apertures 24 in the foot members 11. The apertures 24 are preferably located substantially midway between the top and bottom edges of the foot members 11 and adjacent the front edges thereof.

The length of the ledges 12 is suificient to acoommodate books of average thickness and in order that the bar 22 may rest flat against the leaves or all books that can be supported on the ledges, the lower portions of the side arms are offset forwardly, as at 25. In order that the bar 22 may be held against the book leaves with a clamping action the foot members 11 are provided with lateral cam flanges 26 extending toward each other. The inner or upper edges of these flanges are inclined to provide cam surfaces 27 engaged by the oifsets 25 on the arms. As the bar 22 is pulled outwardly away from the plate 10, the ofisets 25 ride downwardly over the cam surfaces 27, causing the lower portions of the side arms 21 to be drawn toward each other and thus producing a spring tension on the arms so that they tend to spring outwardly and force the offsets up the inclined edges and thereby urge the bar toward the plate. Thus the bar 22 will always exert a clamping action on the leaves of an open book to hold the book open and against the back members.

To hold the clamping members out of the way when a book is to be placed in the holder, the lower inner edges of flanges 26 are provided with recesses 28 below the cam portions 27 so that when the cross bar 22 is pulled out far enough, the side arms 21, above the offsets 25, will snap into the recesses, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. After the book has been placed in open position on the ledges, the cross bar 22 may be raised until the side arms 21 are released from the reoesses 28, when the ofisets will ride upwardly on the cam surfaces and automatically clamp the cross bar against the book.

Obviously, the present invention is not re stricted to the particular embodiment thereof herein shown and described.

What I claim is:

In combination with an inclined back member, foot members on the back member at opposite sides thereof; said foot members having ledge portions to support an open book; flanges on the foot members extending laterally toward each other and parallel to the back member; said flanges each having an inclined inner edge and recesses below the inclined edge; and a bailshaped member having side arms arranged between the foot members; laterally extending trunnions on the bottom of the side arms and journalled in the foot members; said arms having forwardly offset portions above the trunnions to engage the inclined edges of the flanges.

JOHN L. CLARK. 

